14 DAY TRIAL // Located between 6,500 and 10,000 light-years from Earth, in the Carina constellation, the Carina Nebula (NGC 3372) is revealed in all its splendor in this amazing image snapped by the European Space Agency's (ESA) Herschel Space Observatory.
This is the most complex telescope ever constructed and, apparently, it likes to show off its remarkable abilities. It has recently targeted this particular nebula partially because it is home to two of the brightest stars ever discovered, Eta Carinae and HD 93129A.
The Gum 31 nebula is also visible towards the top of the image. It is an integrated part of the overall structure, though it is well defined and has its own borders. As an interesting side-note, the mass of the gas captured in this image is equivalent to 650,000 times that of the Sun.
ESA experts say that the bright area at the center of the image is the young stellar cluster NGC 3324.